Note : Les descriptions sont présentées dans la langue officielle dans laquelle elles ont été soumises.
CA 02758541 2011-11-16
Attorney Docket No. 2010P01803US
1
HOUSEHOLD APPLIANCE INCLUDING TWO-PIECE FASCIA PANEL AND
METHOD OF MANUFACTURING THE TWO-PIECE FASCIA PANEL
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
[0001] The present invention relates to a household appliance and, more
particularly, to a household appliance including a two-piece fascia panel, and
a method of
manufacturing the two-piece fascia panel.
2. Related Art
[0002] In a related art household appliance, such as a dishwasher, fascia
panels
are designed with cosmetic and structural features on one piece or component.
A one-
component fascia panel may be secured to a door of the household appliance,
and may
include a variety of switches, buttons, and other controls used to operate the
household
appliance.
[0003] In this one-component fascia panel design, the injection molding
process
used to manufacture the fascia panels becomes more critical. In particular,
material flow
and gating cannot be optimized for both cosmetic and structural features that
are required
of these fascia panels. Furthermore, the gating location during an injection
molding
process does not allow for molding technologies such as metallic acrylonitrile-
butadiene-
styrene (ABS) or use of other metallic materials or ln-Mold Decorating, for
example. A
one-component fascia panel design also increases complexity and costs in the
manufacturing process, particularly in tool complexity.
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[0004] Further, because at least a portion of the one-component fascia
panel is
exposed to and used by a consumer, cosmetic appearance becomes important and,
therefore, higher cost materials as well as increasingly complex molding
processes are
used for making the one-component fascia panel. Additionally, because of the
one-
component design, an entire fascia panel is required to be switched out or
replaced if a
consumer would like a different cosmetic appearance.
[0005] The present invention overcomes the problems associated with the
related
art by introducing a fascia panel with a cosmetic portion and an electronics
housing
designed as two separate components that when joined or attached, form the
fascia panel.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] A first aspect of the present invention is directed to a household
appliance
having at least one fascia panel. In an exemplary embodiment, the at least one
fascia
panel may include an electronics housing structured to house electronic
components for
operating the household appliance, and a cosmetic panel structured to be at
least one of
mounted and joined with the electronics housing. The cosmetic panel may
include one or
more interfaces cooperating with the electronic components for operating the
dishwasher.
[0007] A second aspect of the present invention is directed to a fascia
panel that is
operable to be used with any number of electrical/electronic devices in
addition to
household appliances. The fascia panel may include an electronics housing
structured to
house electronic components for operating a device, and a cosmetic panel
structured to be
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at least one of mounted and joined with the electronics housing. The cosmetic
panel may
include one or more interfaces cooperating with the electronic components for
operating the
device.
[0008] A third aspect of the present invention is directed to a
method of
manufacturing a fascia panel. In an exemplary embodiment, the method may
include molding
and solidifying an electronics housing structured to house electronic
components for operating
a device; separately molding and solidifying a cosmetic panel, the cosmetic
panel including
one or more interfaces cooperating with the electronic components for
operating the device;
and at least one of mounting and joining the cosmetic panel with the
electronics housing
subsequent to their respective solidifying steps.
[0008a] A fourth aspect of the present invention is directed to a
household appliance
having at least one fascia panel, the at least one fascia panel comprising: an
electronics
housing structured to house electronic components for operating the household
appliance; and
a cosmetic panel formed separately from the electronics housing and including
one or more
gate locations along an edge of the cosmetic panel, the one or more gate
locations configured
for use with at least one of metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS)
and In-Mold
Decorating molding processes, the cosmetic panel structured to be at least one
of mounted and
joined with the electronics housing and forming an outer surface of the fascia
panel, and the
cosmetic panel including one or more interfaces cooperating with the
electronic components
for operating the dishwasher.
[0008b] A fifth aspect of the present invention is directed to a
fascia panel, comprising:
an electronics housing structured to house electronic components for operating
a device; and a
cosmetic panel formed separately from the electronics housing and including
one or more gate
locations along an edge of the cosmetic panel, the one or more gate locations
configured for
use with at least one of metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and In-
Mold
Decorating molding processes, the cosmetic panel structured to be at least one
of mounted and
joined with the electronics housing and forming an outer surface of the fascia
panel, and the
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cosmetic panel including one or more interfaces cooperating with the
electronic components
for operating the device.
[0008c] A sixth aspect of the present invention is directed to a
method of
manufacturing a fascia panel of a household appliance, the fascia panel
including an
electronics housing structured to house electronic components for operating a
device, and a
cosmetic panel formed separately from the electronics housing and including
one or more gate
locations along an edge of the cosmetic panel, the one or more gate locations
configured for
use with at least one of metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and In-
Mold
Decorating molding processes, the cosmetic panel structured to be at least one
of mounted and
joined with the electronics housing and forming an outer surface of the fascia
panel, and the
cosmetic panel including one or more interfaces cooperating with the
electronic components
for operating the device, the method comprising: molding and solidifying the
electronics
housing structured to house the electronic components for operating the
device; separately
molding and solidifying the cosmetic panel, wherein the cosmetic panel is
separately molded
using the at least one of metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene (ABS) and
In-Mold
Decorating molding processes and the one or more gate locations along an edge
of the
cosmetic panel, the cosmetic panel including the one or more interfaces
cooperating with the
electronic components for operating the device; and at least one of mounting
and joining the
cosmetic panel with the electronics housing subsequent to their respective
solidifying steps.
[0009] The illustrative aspects of the present invention are designed to
solve the
problems herein described and other problems not discussed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] These and other features of this disclosure will be more
readily understood
from the following detailed description of the various aspects of the
disclosure taken in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings that depict various exemplary
embodiments of
the disclosure, in which:
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FIG. 1 depicts a household appliance and a fascia panel thereof according to
an
exemplary embodiment of the invention;
FIGS. 2A and 2B depict a fascia panel having a cosmetic panel structured to be
at least one of mounted and joined with an electronics housing according to an
exemplary
5 embodiment of the invention; and
FIG. 3 depicts a method of manufacturing a fascia panel according to an
exemplary embodiment of the invention.
[0011] The drawings are merely schematic representations and not
intended to portray
specific parameters of the invention. The drawings are intended to depict only
typical
embodiments of the invention, and therefore should not be considered as
limiting the scope of
the invention. In the drawings, like numbering represents like elements.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0012] FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a household appliance
and a fascia
panel thereof according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention. In FIG.
1, an
externally accessible fascia panel 10 of a control unit of a domestic
appliance, such as a
dishwasher, may include a number of panel interfaces, openings, printing, etc.
In FIG. 1, two
panel openings 12, 14 have been cut. The one panel opening 12 may serve, for
example, as a
mounting for a control button 16 while the other panel opening 14 may be
provided as a
mounting for an indicator 18. As shown in FIG. 1, both the control button 16
and the
indicator 18 may be approximately level or flat with the front face 20 of the
fascia panel 10 at
the front.
[0013] Furthermore, the fascia panel 10 may include a control board
22 arranged at a
distance behind the fascia panel 10 that is used for mounting or holding
electrical and/or
electronic components 24, 26, 28, for control of the household appliance. The
individual
components 24, 26, 28 may furthermore be preferably connected to each other
via the board
22. It would, of course, be equally conceivable for the components 24, 26, 28
to be connected
to each other or to other components by means of separately routed leads. It
can also be seen
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from FIG. 1 that the components 24, 26, 28 are arranged on the front 30 of the
board 22 facing
the front of the fascia panel 10.
[0014] While not depicted in FIG. 1, the physical structure of the
household appliance
or device of the present invention outside of the novel fascia panel herein
may be any
household appliance or device structure known in the related art.
[0015] As shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the fascia panel 10 may
include an electronics
housing 200 structured to house electronic components 24, 26, 28 for operating
the household
appliance, and a cosmetic panel 210 structured to be at least one of mounted
and joined with
the electronics housing 200. As noted above, the cosmetic panel 210 may
include one or
more interfaces or openings 12, 14 cooperating with the electronic components
24, 26, 28 for
operating the household appliance.
[0016] The cosmetic panel 210 may include one or more hook
components 220,
wherein the cosmetic panel 210 may be mounted to the electronics housing 200
by the one or
more hook components 220. The one or more hook components 220 may be
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placed in interference to the electronics housing to eliminate any gaps
between the
cosmetic panel 210 and the electronics housing 200. Of course, while hook
components
220 may be shown in the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 2, one of ordinary
skill in the
art would understand that other methods of joining or attaching the cosmetic
panel 210 to
the electronics housing 200 are not precluded, such as using welding, epoxy
techniques,
and/or connector arrangements such as a male-female connector arrangement.
[0017] Further, the cosmetic panel 210 may include one or more gate
locations
230 operable to be used with at least one of metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-
styrene
(ABS) and In-Mold Decorating molding processes. It should be noted that the
injection
molding of the cosmetic panel 210, since it is performed separately from the
injection
molding of the electronics housing 200, may use these advanced molding
processes. Of
course, other molding processes known in the art are not precluded.
[0018] The fascia panel 10 may be attached to a door (not shown) of the
household appliance using one or more screws 240. In this manner, the cosmetic
panel
210 may be structured to use the screws 240 for alignment with the door.
[0019] FIG. 3 depicts a method of manufacturing a fascia panel according
to an
exemplary embodiment of the invention. In a separate molding process, an
electronics
housing and a cosmetic panel are molded and solidified. In particular, in step
310, the
electronics housing structured to house electronic components for operating a
device,
such as a dishwasher, is molded and solidified.
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[0020] In step 320, which may be performed concurrently or at different
times
than the molding process in step 310, the cosmetic panel including one or more
interfaces
cooperating with the electronic components for operating the device is molded
and
solidified. Then, in step 330, the cosmetic panel and the electronics housing
are mounted
and/or joined subsequent to their respective solidifying steps.
100211 It should be noted that the injection molding of the cosmetic
panel, since it
is performed separately from the injection molding of the electronics housing,
may use
advanced molding processes such as metallic acrylonitrile-butadiene-styrene
(ABS) and
In-Mold Decorating molding processes. In the related art one-component fascia
panel,
the gating location does not allow for these molding processes.
[0022] Additionally, since the electronics housing is not exposed to the
consumer, a lower cost material may be used than that of the cosmetic panel,
thereby
lowering manufacturing costs.
100231 During the molding and solidifying of the cosmetic panel, one or
more
hook components may be provided, wherein the cosmetic panel may be mounted in
interference to the electronics housing using the one or more hook components
to
eliminate a gap between the cosmetic panel and the electronics housing. Of
course, the
hook components may be added to the cosmetic panel after injection molding by
other
known manufacturing methods. Further, the cosmetic panel and the electronics
housing
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may be joined by other techniques, such as welding, bonding, and/or connector
methods such
as using a male-female connector arrangement.
[0024] The method of the invention allows for an improved cosmetic of
the surfaces
of the fascia panel due to optimized injection moldability. Also, the
invention allows for
variant interchangeability due to scenarios where the electronics housing and
multiple
cosmetic components may be interchanged. Additionally, the method allows for
simplified
and lower cost packaging due to a smaller, less complicated cosmetic
component. Further,
there is an improved quality for the cosmetic component due to not having to
work or handle
the electronics housing together.
[0025] While only certain features of the invention have been illustrated
and described
herein, many modifications and changes will occur to those skilled in the art.
It is, therefore,
to be understood that the appended claims are intended to cover all such
modifications and
changes.
